the people i´ve met
my week of vacation was incredible. highlights included one crazy hike to the top of mnt esmeralda in iquique, however, we were told it really was not a mountain, just a huge hill. but i dont know, to me it was one of the biggest mountains in the world, especially since the bottom half was all sand. it took in total about 4 hours to hike up. a great night´s sleep and super stong legs, and one of the most beautiful views in the world was what i got out of it. i think that was the closest i have ever felt to being on top of the world.
so where are the pictures? good question. my camera is lost, somewhere in the mail between the u.s. and chile. however my friends have pletny and i promise soon there will be a photo site!
on the way to iquique i was lucky enough to sit next to the cutest chilean 2 year old in the world who woke me up at 6 am screaming ¨chica! chica! mira!¨ he was patting my head and pointing out the windows. we were driving throught the andes, and he thought it was just the most amazing thing ever, and i have to agree with him. so we sat together, he in my lap, and stared out the window for the next hour just pointing and saying wow. he was so great.
after iquique we went to la serena, on the way to la serena we (me, and 4 gringa friends) were sitting in the bus station when we noticed someone taking pictures of us! two young chilean guys thought there were being all smooth, but little did they know their flast gave them away. when we noticed we called them over and asked them what the heck they thought they were doing! of course they had no reason, and we ended up chatting away for and hour before our bus came. their names were elvis, (yes, elivs) and miguel. after we boarded the bus on of the attendants came to our seats and told us to look out the window. elvis and miguel were chasing the bus and jumping at the window holding up a sign with hearts. haha.
in la serena i continued to meet amazing people. we stayed in a hostel named hostel santa maria. maria was and older woman and she was the owner of the house. her very hippie-esqe son ran the place, and spent the nights serenading the hostel with his african drum and rainstick skills. i loved it!
at the hostle i met 4 incredibly beatuiful, smart, funny, and nice german girls. across the board, wherever i have traveled, i have always found germans to be over the top beautiful and nice, guys and girls alike! me and these girls had the time of out lives sitting out one night in the back yard which was more like and exotic patio, and shared stories over glasses of wine. i got all their email addresses and cant wait to one day meet up with them again.
one afternoon we went to the beach. the water was a bit cold so we ended up just laying out in the sand. after a while i got a little restless and was by the shore looking for shells. two little boys asked to see what i was collecting and after a few minutes of conversation i was invited to help them build a sand castle. so the two seven year olds, ignacio and carlos, and i sat and played in the sand for quite some time. i also have pictures of this on the way too! these two little boys were so funny. they thought my american accent was hilarious and kept asking me to repeat words and say things in english as the erupted in laughter. after the castle we flew their kites for a bit until it was time for them to head home.
finally, the most interesting person i met. it was maria, the owner of the hostel. i woke up early one morning to go for a run and when i came back she made me a coffee and a huge glass of water. she and i sat and talked about various things, but she was really interested in talking about politics. politics can be a touchy subject here, both with the us and chile´s history with pinochet. but she was more than open to sit and tell me her life story and what it was like for her growing up under pinochet´s regime. she told me about how she could never see a doctore and get treatment for her cancer, and how she thinks that what bush has done with iraq has saved the iraqui people from their own pinochet. it was so interesting to hear this point of view, and very eye opening. that thought had never crossed my mind, but i did think about it for a while after. i love being able to talk and listen to people of all ages and hear their stories and tell them mine.
and finally we headed back to valdivia, and when i walked into my house here, i actually felt like i was coming back to my own home. during my vacation i was homesick for mama, papa, cristobal, y dani. the feeling of being welcomed was so great. valdivia is one incredible new home!
love love love and more love for all!
i miss you!
p.s. i have sooooo much more to write, about stray dogs, cows (which i am deathly afraid of), salsa, farms, music, santiago bus stations, oh man. more to come!
so where are the pictures? good question. my camera is lost, somewhere in the mail between the u.s. and chile. however my friends have pletny and i promise soon there will be a photo site!
on the way to iquique i was lucky enough to sit next to the cutest chilean 2 year old in the world who woke me up at 6 am screaming ¨chica! chica! mira!¨ he was patting my head and pointing out the windows. we were driving throught the andes, and he thought it was just the most amazing thing ever, and i have to agree with him. so we sat together, he in my lap, and stared out the window for the next hour just pointing and saying wow. he was so great.
after iquique we went to la serena, on the way to la serena we (me, and 4 gringa friends) were sitting in the bus station when we noticed someone taking pictures of us! two young chilean guys thought there were being all smooth, but little did they know their flast gave them away. when we noticed we called them over and asked them what the heck they thought they were doing! of course they had no reason, and we ended up chatting away for and hour before our bus came. their names were elvis, (yes, elivs) and miguel. after we boarded the bus on of the attendants came to our seats and told us to look out the window. elvis and miguel were chasing the bus and jumping at the window holding up a sign with hearts. haha.
in la serena i continued to meet amazing people. we stayed in a hostel named hostel santa maria. maria was and older woman and she was the owner of the house. her very hippie-esqe son ran the place, and spent the nights serenading the hostel with his african drum and rainstick skills. i loved it!
at the hostle i met 4 incredibly beatuiful, smart, funny, and nice german girls. across the board, wherever i have traveled, i have always found germans to be over the top beautiful and nice, guys and girls alike! me and these girls had the time of out lives sitting out one night in the back yard which was more like and exotic patio, and shared stories over glasses of wine. i got all their email addresses and cant wait to one day meet up with them again.
one afternoon we went to the beach. the water was a bit cold so we ended up just laying out in the sand. after a while i got a little restless and was by the shore looking for shells. two little boys asked to see what i was collecting and after a few minutes of conversation i was invited to help them build a sand castle. so the two seven year olds, ignacio and carlos, and i sat and played in the sand for quite some time. i also have pictures of this on the way too! these two little boys were so funny. they thought my american accent was hilarious and kept asking me to repeat words and say things in english as the erupted in laughter. after the castle we flew their kites for a bit until it was time for them to head home.
finally, the most interesting person i met. it was maria, the owner of the hostel. i woke up early one morning to go for a run and when i came back she made me a coffee and a huge glass of water. she and i sat and talked about various things, but she was really interested in talking about politics. politics can be a touchy subject here, both with the us and chile´s history with pinochet. but she was more than open to sit and tell me her life story and what it was like for her growing up under pinochet´s regime. she told me about how she could never see a doctore and get treatment for her cancer, and how she thinks that what bush has done with iraq has saved the iraqui people from their own pinochet. it was so interesting to hear this point of view, and very eye opening. that thought had never crossed my mind, but i did think about it for a while after. i love being able to talk and listen to people of all ages and hear their stories and tell them mine.
and finally we headed back to valdivia, and when i walked into my house here, i actually felt like i was coming back to my own home. during my vacation i was homesick for mama, papa, cristobal, y dani. the feeling of being welcomed was so great. valdivia is one incredible new home!
love love love and more love for all!
i miss you!
p.s. i have sooooo much more to write, about stray dogs, cows (which i am deathly afraid of), salsa, farms, music, santiago bus stations, oh man. more to come!
posted by Katie @ 4:39 PM
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